Tuesday, October 27, 2015

The North American mobile industry continues to lead other regions in the adoption of new mobile technologies, according to a newly released GSMA report called "The Mobile Economy - North America 2015’, including 4G networks, the Internet of Things (IoT) and digital commerce.

North America is home to more than 250 million unique subscribers, equivalent to a unique subscriber penetration rate of 70 per cent and 360 million mobile connections (excluding M2M), with three-quarters of connections being smartphones.

Some stats:

4G already accounts for just over half of the connection base in the US, while Canada is expected to breach the 50% level in early 2016. By the end of the decade, 84% of connections in North America are forecast to be on 4G networks.

The US is by far the largest market with 232 million unique mobile subscribers, a penetration rate of about 72%. In Canada the rate is still much lower at 56%, with a total of 20 million unique subscribers.

Cisco forecasts that mobile data usage will grow at a 42% CAGR in North America through to 2019, reaching nearly 11 GB per user per month. This compares to a global average growth rate of 24% and a 2019 usage level of 4 GB.

This total impact includes a direct economic contribution of mobile operators and the rest of the mobile ecosystem of $217 billion (1.1% of GDP), an indirect impact on the rest of the economy of $130 billion (0.7% of GDP), and a productivity impact of $324 billion (1.7% of GDP) brought about by the use of mobile technology by businesses and workers in the region.

Cellular M2M: 12.8% of connections in North America (Q3 2015), global average is 3.9%, the next highest region is Europe at 8.2%

“The North American mobile industry has been the strongest performing of any developed region globally for some time, characterised by substantial subscriber growth, the early adoption of new technologies, high levels of mobile usage and strong revenue trends,” said Michael O’Hara, Chief Marketing Officer, GSMA. “The region continues to lead innovation in a number of areas in the mobile ecosystem, including hardware, access technologies, operating systems and new apps and services that are scaling rapidly and changing how individuals live and work.”

Equinix is deploying the Infinera Cloud Xpress to interconnect its four data centers in Tokyo. The Equinix IBX data centers in Tokyo currently serve over 260 companies.

Equinix is also using the Infinera Cloud Xpress in Hong Kong to interconnect local data centers.

“Equinix is rapidly expanding across the globe,” said Teri Francis, vice president of technology at Equinix. “Cloud Xpress is an ideal solution for us to scale bandwidth in our Hong Kong and Tokyo networks and enhance our ability to connect our customers. Cloud Xpress is extremely simple to deploy and manage and fits our high-density, low power requirements. We are now looking forward to deploying the Cloud Xpress family in other markets globally to take advantage of these same scaling benefits.”

“The continued deployment of the Cloud Xpress by a leading datacenter operator like Equinix underscores the value Cloud Xpress brings to high-bandwidth datacenter interconnect,” said Stu Elby, senior vice president of cloud network strategy and technology at Infinera. “The Cloud Xpress, a purpose-built rack-and-stack datacenter platform, is ideal for operators in Asia where space limitation is a factor. The Cloud Xpress addresses the critical needs of datacenter operators and continues to gain traction in networks across the globe.”

In June 2015, Infinera announced the addition of 100 gigabit Ethernet (GbE) client services in its Cloud Xpress family of metro Cloud platforms. The Cloud Xpress family, which Infinera announced last September 2014 and began shipping that December, is designed specifically to address the needs of Cloud service providers, Internet content providers, Internet Exchange service providers, large enterprises and other large-scale datacenter operators. It leverages the company's unique oPIC-500 metro-optimized photonic integrated circuit to deliver DWDM datacenter interconnect services up to 500 Gbps in a compact two rack unit chassis. With the addition of the new platform, the Cloud Xpress family now supports 10 GbE, 40 GbE and 100 GbE client-side interfaces to match customer specific requirements.Along with the introduction of the new Cloud Xpress with 100 GbE, Infinera announced important enhancements to the Cloud Xpress family including MACsec encryption for improved security, NETCONF & YANG support for Software Defined Networking (SDN) and ease of use, and LLDP discovery protocols enabling datacenter automation. NETCONF & YANG support enables smooth integration into datacenter automation and management systems; LLDP protocol awareness for auto-discovery of adjacent switches and routers across the WAN supports efficient connectivity validation and troubleshooting, and MACsec provides end-to-end encryption to keep data secure.

Cisco agreed to acquire Lancope, a privately held network security company for $452.5 million in cash and assumed equity awards, plus additional retention based incentives for Lancope employees who join Cisco. The companies have been commercial partners for some time.

Lancope, which is based in Alpharetta, Georgia, provides network behavior analytics, threat visibility and security intelligence to help protect companies against top cyber security threats. Its StealthWatch FlowCollector collects and analyzes massive amounts of network data to obtain visibility for early threat detection. The goal is to quickly detect a wide range of attacks from APTs and DDoS to zero-day malware and insider threats.

Cisco said the Lancope acquisition will advance itsSecurity Everywhere strategy of providing advanced threat protection across the full attack continuum -- before, during and after an attack. With Lancope, Cisco's portfolio of security solutions adds an additional capability of network behavior analytics that extends protection further into the network.

"As enterprises digitize, security challenges rapidly evolve. Real time visibility and understanding of the behavior of every machine or device on the network becomes critical in adapting the ability of enterprises to identify and respond to the next wave of cyber threats," said Rob Salvagno, vice president, Cisco Corporate Development. "Cisco is committed to helping organizations defend their networks and devices. Together with Lancope, our combined solutions can help turn a customer's entire network into a security sensor."

Lancope was founded in 2000 with backing from Canaan Partners, Council Capital and H.I.G. Ventures. The company is headed by Mike Potts, who previously served as President and CEO of AirDefense.

A growing number of Service Providers will be deploying SDN technologies in their mobile backhaul networks in 2016, according to a newly published 2015 IHS Infonetics Macrocell Backhaul Strategies and Vendor Leadership: Global Service Provider Survey.

Over half of those surveyed currently share backhaul facilities with other operators or intend to do so

Capacity and cell site location are the top-rated criteria by respondents in planning for 5G networks; this is echoed in rising backhaul link capacity requirements

Alcatel-Lucent and Huawei tie for leading macrocell backhaul vendor, each cited as a top-3 vendor by 41 percent of respondents, ahead of Ericsson

“With the evolution of mobile networks in progress, mobile backhaul solutions need to be more flexible, scalable and simplified to deliver increased capacity with quality of service. Operators taking part in our latest macrocell backhaul survey have a clear set of priorities regarding backhaul service-level agreement metrics, for instance. It’ll be important for backhaul to be integrated for macrocell and small cell backhaul and be more intelligent, fully optimized and operationally efficient,” said Richard Webb, research director for mobile backhaul and small cells at IHS.

QSFP28 shipments are expected to surge in 2016 as demand exceeds several hundred thousand units

“Suppliers are preparing for a fundamental shift in data center optics from 10G technologies and processes to 25G — this applies to both VCSELs (vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers) and single-mode optics. This is the single largest change the industry has experienced in the last decade, and the advent of 100GbE in 2016 is the key catalyst,” said Andrew Schmitt, research director for carrier transport networking at IHS Technology.

Intel Security is revamping its corporate strategy to focus on the endpoint and the cloud as the most effective areas for advanced visibility and practical operational control. The company seeks to deliver a simplified user experience powered by centralized management and a connected architecture across Intel and third-party products.

“The rising volume and complexity of attacks present a vicious cycle of challenges for organizations and makes speed and efficiency critical,” said Chris Young, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Intel Security Group. “With a rapidly expanding attack surface, and a shortage of relevant talent and expertise, defenders need to win on visibility into events, simplified management, and capabilities that empower teams to close the loop on attacks in progress – faster, more effectively, and with fewer resources.”

McAfee Active Response -- a new endpoint threat detection and response solution, supplies on-demand and continuous visibility into an array of endpoint activities with powerful, automated tools to respond to and monitor threat events. The solutions can be used and managed together using Intel Security’s broadly adopted centralized management platform for a high-speed, high-accuracy, closed-loop approach to the threat defense lifecycle.

Intel Security also now supports the Structured Threat Integration Expression (STIX) and Trusted Automated eXchange of Indicator Information (TAXII) standards designed to enhance detection of threats through sharing of threat intelligence.

Infinera reported GAAP revenue for its third fiscal quarter of $232.5 million compared to $207.3 million in the second quarter of 2015 and $173.6 million in the third quarter of 2014.

GAAP gross margin for the quarter was 44.2% compared to 46.7% in the second quarter of 2015 and 43.4% in the third quarter of 2014. GAAP operating margin for the quarter was 6.1% compared to 8.0% in the second quarter of 2015 and 4.3% in the third quarter of 2014. GAAP net income for the quarter was $8.5 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, compared to $17.9 million, or $0.13 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2015, and $4.8 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2014.
The results included the operating results of Transmode from the date the acquisition closed on August 20, 2015.

"Our excellent third quarter results reflect continued strength across our core business, including growing Cloud Xpress revenues as well as the initial contribution from the new metro business. Adding the recently announced metro core and long haul interconnect products along with Transmode's suite of metro solutions enables Infinera to further enhance the superior experience we deliver to our customers," said Tom Fallon, Infinera's Chief Executive Officer. "As the most vertically integrated transport provider in the world, now armed with a broad end-to-end portfolio, Infinera is in a terrific position to continue to deliver differentiated financial results on both the top and bottom lines."

Radisys reported consolidated revenue was $44.8 million, compared to $47.0 million in the prior quarter and $50.8 million in the third quarter of 2014. Gross margin (GAAP) for the quarter was 29.0%, compared to 26.8% in the prior quarter and 28.9% in the third quarter of 2014. There was a net loss (GAAP) of $2.1 million, or $0.06 per share, compared to a GAAP net loss of $4.1 million, or $0.11 per share, in the prior quarter and GAAP net loss of $4.5 million, or $0.12 per share, in the third quarter of 2014.

Software-Systems revenue was $15.5 million, compared to $14.2 million in the prior quarter and $11.6 million in the third quarter of 2014, representing an increase of 33% year-on-year. Revenue growth was supported by continued strong MediaEngine demand in support of VoLTE deployments. Embedded Products revenue was $29.3 million, compared to $32.9 million in the prior quarter and $39.2 million in the third quarter of 2014. The decline in Embedded Products revenue is consistent with expectations for this segment as part of the company's strategy announced in the first quarter of 2015.

"As expected, we delivered another strong quarter in our Software-Systems business with revenue increasing 33% year-over-year, and when combined with prudent expense management, led to meaningful improvement in our bottom-line results,” said Brian Bronson, Radisys President and CEO. “During the third quarter, we fulfilled the remainder of the $11 million follow-on MediaEngine order from our large Asian carrier customer and also received purchase orders as part of our ongoing engagement with a large North American carrier for the commercial deployment of our FlowEngine product. We currently expect to ship these initial commercial orders during the fourth quarter, which represents important validation for FlowEngine and the disruptive proposition it affords to communication service providers as we position to double revenue for this product line in 2016.”

Cato Networks, a start-up based in Tel Aviv, Israel, announced $20 million in Series A funding for its rethinking of network security.

Cato Networks is developing a new Network Security as a Service (NSaaS) platform for the distributed, mobile and Cloud-based enterprise. The solution will be available to the general public in the first half 2016, and the company is currently accepting beta customers.

The company was founded by Shlomo Kramer and Gur Shatz, who had bootstrapped the company until now. Kramer is one of the founding fathers of network security, best known for introducing the first firewall to the market as a co-founder of Check Point Software, and later the first web application firewall as a founder and CEO of Imperva. Shatz brings an extensive background in Cloud-based web applications security and acceleration. Previously, he was the co-founder and CEO of Incapsula. With Cato Networks, Kramer and Shatz are creating the next big chapter in the evolution of network security.

“Cato Networks has identified a cloud-based approach for businesses to address the challenge of network security complexity, which opens up organizations to attacks as hackers can slip through the cracks of misconfigurations and software vulnerabilities,” said Steve Krausz, general partner at USVP. “Shlomo Kramer has already had a major impact on the shape of network security, and we see the potential for Cato Networks to represent the next major paradigm shift.”

The financing was led by Steve Krausz, general partner at U.S. Venture Partners (USVP), and Theresia Gouw, founder of Aspect Ventures.